Watch The American President online: Episode 1 A Matter of Destiny (Family Ties & Happenstance)

Family Ties: The last thing that the Founding Fathers envisioned was a hereditary chief executive. After all, they had fought a war in part to rid themselves of a king. Yet power inevitably passes from generation to generation, and several families have returned to the White House as though born to it. The stories of these four men reveal both the blessings and the curses of inherited power. Two of them were ill-at-ease with their lofty legacies and struggled as president, while the remaining two flourished in the exercise of power. Happenstance: Nearly one in five American presidents has died in office. The vice presidents who succeeded them were often chosen for the ticket less because they were equal to the most powerful office in the land than because they provided some electoral advantage. What happens when such a man takes office -- frequently facing widespread conviction that he is unworthy of the powers he inherits?

click here to see where to watch or .